Hey, everyone. It’s me; the guy you saw putting tape on various people during the 2025 Giant Bomb-a-thon and who you can officially blame for any recording mistakes in the GOTY deliberations. Also I made some hit “Social Media” edits for the hip, cool, relevant, and newly independent brand known as Giant Bomb™. I’m here to tell the very few of you who read this about my top 10 games of 2025, so without further ado, here are the nomine– er I mean here are the games.
10. BALL x PIT
Definitely my favorite podcasting game of 2025. BALL X PIT takes Breakout to a whole new level with multiple characters, retaliating blocks, and shooting from the rear! Unlocking the ability to take a team of two into the pit was a game-changer, and I’m looking forward to the DLC. Anyone who says the harvest management between runs is bad is wrong.
9. Roadcraft
Finally, the evolution of the Mudrunner games has really paid off. As a fan of almost everything Saber Interactive has done before, Roadcraft just lets you do all the things you’ve wanted since the beginning. Build new roads? Sure! Build bridges across random chasms? Go for it! Push your friends into flood waters? Drown them! It really is the culmination of everything they have done before in one perfect road crafting package.
8. Split Fiction
Everytime, Hazelight does not fail to make a better game than their previous. Split Fiction excels at level design, gameplay, puzzles, and visuals, but they do still stumble a bit with the story telling. I’m still not sure why the villain does all this horrible stuff, but somehow draws the line at murder. It hits tropes, but still manages some emotional payoffs that are worth the journey. Please find a friend, stranger, or sentient object to play this game with; it’s some of the best feeling co-op gameplay in years!
7. R.E.P.O.
A common theme I have noticed while writing these blurbs quite out of order is how 2025 has really been the year of the genre evolution. I feel like so many of these games have taken what came before and really added to them. REPO is no exception. While the gameplay is very similar to that of a Lethal Company, REPO delivers it with a visual style that carries so much personification. This is the first game that feels like what those social space games try to achieve. Mouths move, eyes look at who is talking, and proximity chat feels realistic. I kept finding myself off searching rooms with different friends, and we can catch up with each other without being in one big discord conversation. The developers are also constantly updating the game and improving it, giving a lot of reasons to go back to it over other friendslop games that seem to drop the ball in that department.
6. Baby Steps
Put one foot in front of the other, that’s all this game asks of you. Yet within that, it tells a compelling story of a guy who just won’t accept help from anyone. You plead with Nate throughout the game to just ask for help, just ask for some shoes, just go to the bathroom. And just as you are at your wits' end with Nate, he grows. It's a powerful game with powerful moments, difficult challenges, and a lot of male genitalia, but boy, is it worth it.
5. PEAK
Reread the REPO section for the first half of what I want to say about PEAK. It really takes that next step and says, “What if it wasn’t scary?” You and, with mods, as many friends as you please can all embark on a climbing adventure. This is a game I streamed a lot of and kept interacting with people I have streamed with for years, yet we were alone, off camera, climbing and helping each other, and just filling the silence with lively conversation. These proximity friendslop games really feel like being at a party, you finish one conversation, head to the fridge (or different mountain path) for a beer, and strike up a conversation in the kitchen. It is true social magic.
4. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
At the time of writing this, I still have not finished KC: D2, but it has been an absolute joy so far. I have described it as TESIV: Oblivion 2.0. It takes everything from one of my favorite games of all time and evolves it into something wholly new. While it traded the magic and fantasy for historical accuracy, it still has the immersive, real feeling world that Oblivion managed to capture. On top of that, it has some incredible quests, next-level combat, and graphics that make my PC beg for sweet, sweet cooling. I hope Obsidian and Bethesda take plenty of notes from Warhorse for their next games.
3. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Ahhhhh, the French Champagne! What a game! In the past few years, I have tried to get into a few JRPG games (shoutout to DQ8 on the 3DS!), and this is finally the one I have really dived into. I knew nothing about the game going in, and that first realization of what all the petals were will stick with me for the rest of my life. I don’t even think I need to mention it, but that Parry system, oh my god, it's so fun even after 100-hours. Combat good, story engrossing, characters charming, and visuals stunning. I cannot wait to see what this team does next.
2. Blue Prince
Puzzle gamers have been feasting! Who would have thought we would get another puzzle banger in 2025? Blue Prince is a Pipe Dream roguelike knowledge based run based strategy puzzler that bends the mind of the player. You have to get to Room 46, and that’s just the beginning. Every run, you can achieve something, find that one music sheet you’re missing, or write down what pictures are in the room you finally pulled. All that effort is rewarded with a satisfying ending and a post-game that has so many secrets and puzzles that the game never truly ends. I have over 20 pages of meticulous hand written notes that I am legitimately proud of, because they helped me get to that final room. Just a well-made and executed puzzle game that delivers a one-of-a-kind experience.
1. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
I did not have it on my 2025 bingo card that Hideo Kojima would stick the landing, but Death Stranding 2 is a masterpiece. After Death Stranding The First, I could not tell you what had happened, but DS2 nails the storyline that Kojima presents and stays the course through to the end. All those little annoyances from the first game have gone away to make this game feel so good to play. Delivering packages, building roads, and riding monorails feel like a joy. It still has those wild Kojima moments that make your eyes roll, but they are just so cool that you roll your eyes right back to the screen. The ending sequence is a visual spectacle that ends with one of the craziest boss battles you’ve ever played.